iTunes Home Sharing is a streaming service provided by Apple to share media files between different platforms. But it’s not easy for some users to make it work properly. Some just consider an alternative to iTunes Home Sharing. Before introducing the alternative, let’s look at how iTunes Home Sharing work.

iTunes Home Sharing Review

iTunes Home Sharing is a method which was implemented by Apple to make transferring media across networks a lot easier. For example, if you wanted to stream a movie to your Apple TV or you wanted to transfer a video from your iPhone to your PC, then iTunes Home Sharing is what you would use.

How to Use iTunes Home Sharing on PC/Mac

Step 1. Launch iTunes on your computer and if you haven’t already done so, sign in with your Apple ID.Note: It’s important that all of the devices on your Home Sharing network are signed into the same Apple ID.Step 2. Back on iTunes, click on the File > Home Sharing > Turn on Home Sharing tab.Note: To see all of your shared libraries, click music icon at the upper left corner on iTunes.

How to Use iTunes Home Sharing on iPhone/iPod/iPad

Step 1. Take your iPhone. Open “Settings > Music/Videos”.Step 2. Next, swipe down and find the “Home Sharing” heading. If you see your Apple ID there, you can use the iTunes Home Sharing now. If you see Sign in, tap in and enter your Apple ID and password.Step 3. Enjoy share media:

For videos: Go to Videos app > Tap Shared > Choose a Library.

For Music: Go to Music app > Tap Library > Click on Home Sharing.

However, there are lots of restrictions of iTunes Home Sharing that you should pay attention to.

All your devices should be signed into the same Apple ID.

Your computer should be waked up and the iTunes should be opened.

All of your devices should be connected to the same home network.

Only 5 iOS devices are supported to be in the same iTunes Home Sharing network. Only 5 computers can be authorized.

These limitations might not seem like much but if you use iTunes Home Sharing regularly, you’ll begin to realise how limiting they actually are.

Ultimate Alternative to iTunes Home Sharing

A perfect alternative to iTunes Home Sharing is device manager called iMyFone TunesMate, which allows you to manage your iPhone/iPad/iPod and iTunes library. It breaks through iTunes limits and lets you share your iTunes library or iPhone files freely.

Rebuild your iTunes library from different iOS devices, and even from your friends’.

All the limits of iTunes Home Sharing are not required by TunesMate.

Steps to Share iTunes Library to iPhone without Internet

Step 1. Start by launching TunesMate and connecting your iPhone to computer using a USB cable.Step 2. Click on the Transfer iTunes Media to iDevice feature on TunesMate.Step 3. Either select “Entire Library” or select the file types that you want to transfer, before clicking on the “Transfer” button.
Now your iTunes library is moved to your iPhone, you can open your Video or Music app to enjoy the media.

Steps to Share iTunes Media to Different Computers

Step 1. Following the guide in “Steps to Share iTunes Library to iPhone without Internet” above.Step 2. Make sure another computer also has TunesMate installed. Connect your iPhone to the second computer.Step 3. Launch TunesMate and click on the “Transfer iDevice Media to iTunes”. Click “Start” to proceed.Step 4. Select the file types that you want to transfer and click on “Start” to begin.

Note: You can also go to "Music" tab the top menu, select music and hit Export > Export to PC/iTunes as well.

After a few minutes of transferring, the process will be complete and simply click on the “Complete” button. Now open the iTunes on the second computer, and you will find the media files from the first computer.

To Conclude …

All in all, as well as TunesMate there are plenty of iTunes Home Sharing alternatives out there – all of which are better than using iTunes. iTunes is full of bugs and other issues which Apple are yet to fix and until then, using an alternative is in your best interests. If you haven’t already checked out what TunesMate has to offer, go ahead and do so now.